Research progress on the modulation mechanism of electroacupuncture for learning and memory impairment after ischemic stroke / 中国针灸

Electroacupuncture may play a role in treatment of learning and memory impairment after ischemic stroke by regulating phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase (PI3K)/protein kinase B (Akt) signaling pathway, cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP)-dependent protein kinase A (PKA)/cAMP response element binding protein (CREB) signaling pathway, nerve growth factor (NGF)/tyrosine kinase-A (TrkA) signaling pathway, Janus kinase 2 (JAK2)/signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) signaling pathway, Notch signaling pathway, erythropoietin-producing hepatocyte (Eph)/ephrin signaling pathway. The interactions among these pathways should be further explored in treatment of learning and memory impairment after ischemic stroke.

Methamphetamine: Mechanism of Action and Chinese Herbal Medicine Treatment for Its Addiction / 中国结合医学杂志

With the proliferation of synthetic drugs, research on the mechanism of action of addictive drugs and treatment methods is of great significance. Among them, methamphetamine (METH) is the most representative amphetamine synthetic drug, and the treatment of METH addiction has become an urgent medical and social problem. In recent years, the therapeutic effects of Chinese herbal medicines on METH addiction have gained widespread attention because of their non-addictiveness, multiple targets, low side effects, low cost, and other characteristics. Previous studies have identified a variety of Chinese herbal medicines with effects on METH addiction. Based on the research on METH in recent years, this article summarizes the mechanism of action of METH as the starting point and briefly reviews the Chinese herbal medicine-based treatment of METH.

Two different techniques combined with MIS-TLIF in the treatment of degenerative lumbar spondylolisthesis:a case-control study / 中国骨伤

OBJECTIVE@#To analyze the difference in clinical efficacy of minimally invasive transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion (MIS-TLIF) under Quadrant channel system combined with microscope and percutaneous pedicle screw in the treatment of degenerative lumbar spondylolisthesis.@*METHODS@#A total of 114 patients with single-segment degenerative lumbar spondylolisthesis from June 2015 to February 2019, were divided into three groups according to the surgical methods, such as the MIS-TLIF under the microscope surgery group ( microscope group), MIS-TLIF combined with percutaneous pedicle screw technique surgery group(percutaneous group) and posterior lumbar interbody fusion surgery group (open group). In the microscope group, there were 12 males and 26 females, aged from 42 to 83 years with an average of (63.29±9.09) years. In the percutaneous group, there were 16 males and 22 females, aged from 45 to 82 years with an average of (63.37±7.50) years. In the open group, there were 12 males and 26 females, aged from 51 to 82 years with an average of (63.76±8.21) years. The general conditions of operation, such as operation time, intraoperative blood loss, postoperative drainage, length of surgical incision, frequency of intraoperative fluoroscopy and postoperative time of lying in bed were recorded to analyze the differences in surgical related indicators. Visual analogue scale (VAS) of waist and leg pain in preoperative and postoperative period (3 days, 3 months, 6 months and 12 months) were recorded to evaluate pain remission;Oswestry Disability Index(ODI), Japanese Orthopaedic Association (JOA) score were recorded to evaluate the recovery of waist and leg function on preoperative and postoperative 12 months. The lumbar spondylolisthesis rate and intervertebral height at 12 months after operation were recorded to evaluate the reduction of spondylolisthesis. The Siepe intervertebral fusion standard was used to analyze the intervertebral fusion rate at 12 months after operation.@*RESULTS@#①All 114 patients were followed up more than 1 year, and no complications related to incision infection occurred. In the microscope group, there was 1 case of subcutaneous effusion 8 days after operation. After percutaneous puncture and drainage, waist compression, and then the healing was delayed. In the percutaneous group, 2 cases of paravertebral muscle necrosis occurred on the side of decompression, and the healing was delayed after debridement. In open group, there was 1 case of intraoperative dural tear, which was packed with free adipose tissue during the operation. There was no postoperative cerebrospinal fluid leakage and other related complications.① Compared with microscope group, percutaneous group increased in operation time, intraoperative blood loss, postoperative wound drainage, surgical incision length, intraoperative fluoroscopy times, and postoperative bed rest time. In open group, intraoperative blood loss, postoperative wound drainage, surgical incision length, and postoperative bed rest time increased, but the intraoperative fluoroscopy time decreased. Compared with percutaneous group, the intraoperative blood loss, wound drainage, surgical incision length, and postoperative bed rest time in open group increased, but operative time and the intraoperative fluoroscopy time decreased(P<0.05). ②ODI and JOA scores of the three groups at 12 months after operation were improved compared with those before operation (P<0.05), but there was no significant difference between the three group(P>0.05). ③Compared with microscope group, the VAS of low back pain in percutaneous group increased at 3 days after operation, and VAS of low back pain in open group increased at 3 days, and 12 month after operation. Compared with percutaneous group, the VAS low back pain score of the open group increased at 3 months after operation (P<0.05). ④ The lumbar spondylolisthesis rate of the three groups of patients at 12 months afrer operation was decreased compared with that before operation(P<0.05), and the intervertebral heigh was increased compared with that before operation(P<0.05), however, there was no significant difference among three groups at 12 months afrer operation(P>0.05). ⑤ There was no significant difference between three groups in the lumbar fusion rate at 12 months afrer operation(P>0.05).@*CONCLUSION@#The MIS-TLIF assisted by microscope and the MIS-TLIF combined with percutaneous pedicle screw are safe and effective to treat the degenerative lumbar spondylolisthesis with single-segment, and the MIS-TLIF assisted by microscope may be more invasive, cause less blood loss and achieve better clinical efficacy.

Prediction of pulmonary function test parameters by parameter response mapping parameters based on random forest regression model / 中华放射学杂志

Objective:To explore the predictive value of random forest regression model for pulmonary function test.Methods:From August 2018 to December 2019, 615 subjects who underwent screening for three major chest diseases in Shanghai Changzheng Hospital were analyzed retrospectively. According to the ratio of forced expiratory volume in the first second to forced vital capacity (FEV 1/FVC) and the percentage of forced expiratory volume in the first second to the predicted value (FEV 1%), the subjects were divided into normal group, high risk group and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) group. The CT quantitative parameter of small airway was parameter response mapping (PRM) parameters, including lung volume, the volume of functional small airways disease (PRMV fSAD), the volume of emphysema (PRMV Emph), the volume of normal lung tissue (PRMV Normal), the volume of uncategorized lung tissue (PRMV Uncategorized) and the percentage of the latter four volumes to the whole lung (%). ANOVA or Kruskal Wallis H was used to test the differences of basic clinical characteristics (age, sex, height, body mass), pulmonary function parameters and small airway CT quantitative parameters among the three groups; Spearman test was used to evaluate the correlation between PRM parameters and pulmonary function parameters. Finally, a random forest regression model based on PRM combined with four basic clinical characteristics was constructed to predict lung function. Results:There were significant differences in the parameters of whole lung PRM among the three groups ( P<0.001). Quantitative CT parameters PRMV Emph, PRMV Emph%, and PRMV Normal% showed a moderate correlation with FEV 1/FVC ( P<0.001). Whole lung volume, PRMV Normal,PRMV Uncategorized and PRMV Uncategorized% were strongly or moderately positively correlated with FVC ( P<0.001), other PRM parameters were weakly or very weakly correlated with pulmonary function parameters. Based on the above parameters, a random forest model for predicting FEV 1/FVC and a random forest model for predicting FEV 1% were established. The random forest model for predicting FEV 1/FVC predicted FEV 1/FVC and actual value was R 2=0.864 in the training set and R 2=0.749 in the validation set. The random forest model for predicting FEV 1% predicted FEV 1% and the actual value in the training set was R 2=0.888, and the validation set was R 2=0.792. The sensitivity, specificity and accuracy of predicting FEV 1% random forest model for the classification of normal group from high-risk group were 0.85(34/40), 0.90(65/72) and 0.88(99/112), respectively; and the sensitivity, specificity and accuracy of predicting FEV 1/FVC random forest model for differentiating non COPD group from COPD group were 0.89(8/9), 1.00 (112/112) and 0.99(120/121), respectively. While the accuracy of two models combination for subclassification of COPD [global initiative for chronic obstructive lung disease (GOLD) Ⅰ, GOLDⅡ and GOLD Ⅲ+Ⅳ] was only 0.44. Conclusions:Small airway CT quantitative parameter PRM can distinguish the normal population, high-risk and COPD population. The comprehensive regression prediction model combined with clinical characteristics based on PRM parameter show good performance differentiating normal group from high risk group, and differentiating non-COPD group from COPD group. Therefore, one-stop CT scan can evaluate the functional small airway and PFT simultaneously.

Sleep quality and sleep disturbances in Chinese pregnant women: a multicenter cross-sectional study / 中华耳鼻咽喉头颈外科杂志

Objective: This study aims to investigate the sleep quality of pregnant women in Xuhui District, Shanghai, and the related factors of sleep disturbances during pregnancy. Methods: From February 2019 to February 2021, we used online integrated sleep questionnaire (including PSQI, BQ, ESS, AIS) in Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine Affiliated Sixth People's Hospital, The International Peace Maternity and Child Health Hospitals of China Welfare Institution, and Shanghai Eighth People's Hospital, to investigate the sleep quality across pregnancy. We also collected maternal physical examination results, childbearing history, sociodemographic, and other clinical data. The prevalences and related factors of various sleep disturbances in pregnant women were analyzed, including insufficient/excessive nighttime sleep, low sleep efficiency, difficulty falling asleep, poor sleep quality, insomnia, daytime sleepiness, and high risk of sleep-disordered breathing (SDB). Results: This study includes 1 898 cases in the first trimester (T1), 3 099 cases in the second trimester (T2), and 1 539 cases in the third trimester (T3). Poor sleep quality (38.6%), daytime sleepiness (mild 41.9%, moderate 17.7%, severe 2.1%), and suspicious insomnia (32.3%) are most prevalent among women in T1 (P<0.01). In comparison, short sleep time (2.7%), long sleep time (8.6%), difficulty falling asleep (12.2%), poor sleep efficiency (35.4%), very poor sleep quality (6.7%), clinical insomnia (21.8%), and high-risk SDB (6.4%) are most prevalent among women in T3 (P<0.05). During pregnancy, late gestation (OR=1.016, 95%CI: 1.006-1.025) and multiple induced/drug abortions (OR=1.329, 95%CI: 1.043-1.692) are risk factors for poor sleep quality (PSQI>5), while multiple full-term deliveries (OR=0.800, 95%CI: 0.675-0.949) is its protective factor. Advanced maternal age (OR=0.976, 95%CI: 0.956-0.997), multiple full-term deliveries (OR=0.808, 95%CI: 0.680-0.959), late gestation (OR=0.983, 95%CI: 0.974-0.992) and hypertension (OR=0.572, 95%CI: 0.401-0.814) are protective factors for daytime sleepiness (ESS>6). The high-risk pregnancy category (OR=9.312, 95%CI: 1.156-74.978) is a risk factor for insomnia (AIS≥4), while multiple full-term deliveries (OR=0.815, 95%CI: 0.691-0.961) is its protective factor. High BMI (OR=1.334, 95%CI: 1.270-1.402) and hypertension (OR=4.427, 95%CI: 2.539-7.719) are risk factors for high-risk SDB in pregnant women. Conclusions: The prevalences of various sleep disturbances are high throughout pregnancy. Noticeably, symptoms of maternal SDB develop along with pregnancy. Different types of sleep disturbances are associated with different factors. Women of high-risk pregnancy category, in late gestation, with high BMI, hypertension, a history of induced/drug abortion, or without a history of full-term delivery can be at high risk of sleep disturbances during pregnancy.

Atrial fibrillation diagnosis algorithm based on improved convolutional neural network / 生物医学工程学杂志

Atrial fibrillation (AF) is a common arrhythmia, which can lead to thrombosis and increase the risk of a stroke or even death. In order to meet the need for a low false-negative rate (FNR) of the screening test in clinical application, a convolutional neural network with a low false-negative rate (LFNR-CNN) was proposed. Regularization coefficients were added to the cross-entropy loss function which could make the cost of positive and negative samples different, and the penalty for false negatives could be increased during network training. The inter-patient clinical database of 21 077 patients (CD-21077) collected from the large general hospital was used to verify the effectiveness of the proposed method. For the convolutional neural network (CNN) with the same structure, the improved loss function could reduce the FNR from 2.22% to 0.97% compared with the traditional cross-entropy loss function. The selected regularization coefficient could increase the sensitivity (SE) from 97.78% to 98.35%, and the accuracy (ACC) was 96.62%, which was an increase from 96.49%. The proposed algorithm can reduce the FNR without losing ACC, and reduce the possibility of missed diagnosis to avoid missing the best treatment period. Meanwhile, it provides a universal loss function for the clinical auxiliary diagnosis of other diseases.

Effects of Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation over Vagus Nerve on Dysphagia after Stroke / 中国康复理论与实践

Objective:To study the effect of transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) regulating excitability of the vagus nerve on dysphagia after stroke. Methods:From September, 2020 to February, 2021, 28 patients with dysphagia after stroke were randomly divided into control group (n = 14) and tDCS group (n = 14). Both groups accepted swallowing function training, and tDCS group received anodal tDCS over vagus nerve, while the control group received sham tDCS. They were assessed with modified Mann Assessment of Swallowing Ability (MMASA) and Australian Therapy Outcome Measures (AusTOMs)-swallowing scale before and after treatment. Results:The scores of MMASA (|t| > 5.593, P < 0.001) and AusTOMs swallowing scale (|Z| > 2.121, P < 0.05) increased in both groups after treatment, and were higher in tDCS group than in the control group (|t| = 2.439, |Z| = 2.079, P < 0.05). Conclusion:Anodal tDCS over vagus nerve may further release dysphagia after stroke.

Obstructive sleep apnea and metabolic syndrome: an association study based on a large sample clinical database / 中华耳鼻咽喉头颈外科杂志

Objective: To investigate the prevalence and associated risk factors of metabolic syndrome (MS) in patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). Methods: From July 2007 to June 2017, a total of 8 155 adult subjects, including 6 484 males and 1 671 females, aged 18-90 (43.13±12.28), body mass index 14.61~59.56 (25.59±3.98) kg/m2,who were admitted to the Department of Otorhinolaryngology head and Neck surgery of The Sixth People's Hospital affiliated to Shanghai Jiao Tong University, were retrospectively analyzed. All patients underwent polysomnography and biochemical tests. Subjects were divided into four groups (non-OSA, mild OSA, moderate OSA, and severe OSA) according to OSA severity. The prevalence of MS was expressed as percentage, and the correlation between OSA and MS and its characteristic pathophysiological indicators was evaluated by logistic regression model after adjusting for factors such as gender, age, BMI, neck circumference, hip circumference, smoking and alcohol consumption, and was expressed by odds ratio (OR). SPSS 25.0 software was used for statistical analysis. Results: The overall prevalence of MS was 43.6%, and that of non-/mild/moderate/severe OSA group was 18.6%, 30.4%, 43.8%, 57.1%.Logistic regression showed that patients with mild/moderate/severe OSA had an increased risk of MS compared with non-OSA patients, with adjusted OR values and confidence intervals of 1.27 (1.05-1.54), 1.84 (1.53-2.22), and 2.08 (1.76-2.46), respectively (P<0.01).In addition, indicators of OSA anoxic burden [oxygen drop index(Toxygen=7.1), minimum blood oxygen(Tminimum=56.3), blood oxygen saturation below 90% cumulative time ratio (TCT90=10.6) ]were closely associated with MS disease(P<0.01), but sleep fragmentation index (arousals index) was not significantly associated with MS disease. Conclusion: The risk of MS gradually increases with the severity of OSA, and the indicators reflecting OSA hypoxia burden are closely related to MS disease.

Efficacy of Han-uvulopalatopharyngoplasty (HUPPP) combined with radiofrequency ablation of tongue base or HUPPP with traction of tongue base on moderate to severe patients with obstructive sleep apnea hypopnea syndrome (OSAHS):a multicenter randomized controlled trial / 中华耳鼻咽喉头颈外科杂志

Objective: To compare the therapeutic efficacy of Han-uvulopalatopharyngoplasty (HUPPP) combined with radiofrequency ablation of tongue base or HUPPP with traction of tongue base on moderate to severe patients with obstructive sleep apnea hypopnea syndrome (OSAHS). Methods: This is a multicenter randomized controlled trial. From March 2017 to July 2019, moderate to severe OSAHS patients from three clinical center in Shanghai who were intolerant to continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) and with velopharyngeal and glossopharyngeal plane obstruction were enrolled in this study. According to the surgical type, they were 1∶1 randomized to HUPPP plus radiofrequency ablation of tongue base group (Ablation group) or HUPPP plus traction of tongue base group (Traction group). All patients completed over-night standard Polysomnography (PSG), upper-airway assessment (Friedman classification, Müller test, CT and cephalometric examination), preoperative routine examination, Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS) and Quebec sleep questionnaire (QSQ). Six to 12 months after operation, all the above-mentioned examinations were repeatedly performed. Changes of aforementioned variables before and after operation were assessed. Results: A total of 43 patients with moderate to severe OSAHS were enrolled in this study. One patient lost to follow-up, the remaining 21 were allocated to Ablation group and 21 were allocated to Traction group. The total therapeutic efficacy of all patients was 69.05% (61.90% in Ablation group and 76.19% in Traction group), but there was no statistical significance between the two groups (P= 0.317). The value of sleep scale score (ESS and QSQ), objective sleep variables (apnea-hypopnea index, oxygen saturation, percentage of time with blood oxygen less than 90% in total sleep time, oxygen desaturation index and micro-arousals) and upper airway cross-sectional area (palatopharyngeal and retrolingual area) of the two groups were improved (P<0.05), but the differences between the two groups were not statistically significant (P>0.05). Conclusion: For moderate to severe OSAHS who had glossopharyngeal plane obstruction, both HUPPP plus radiofrequency ablation of tongue base or HUPPP plus traction of tongue base are effective treatment for OSAHS, and the curative effect is similar. The choice of surgical type could be selected according to patient's or surgical conditions.

Study on clinical efficacy and mechanism of Qingying Tang for treating psoriatic blood-heat syndrome based on IL-23/Th17 / 中国中药杂志

To observe the clinical curative effect of Qingying Tang in the treatment of psoriatic blood-heat syndrome and explore its intrinsic mechanism.In this study,we collected 72 patients with blood-heat syndrome psoriasis admitted to our dermatology clinic from January 2016 to December 2017 and divided into control group and observation group according to the random number table method,36 cases in each group.The patients in control group were given with Acitretin Capsules orally,10 mg/time,twice a day.The patients in observation group were given with Qingying Tang orally,150 mL/time,twice a day.The treatment period was 12 weeks in both groups.The traditional Chinese medicine(TCM) syndrome scores before and after treatment,psoriasis area and severity index(PASI) score,dermatology life quality index(DLQI) score,and the clinical efficacy of the two groups were compared between the two groups;flow cytometry was used to detect peripheral blood Th17 cell percentages before and after treatment in both groups;serum interleukin(IL)-17,IL-23,IL-22,and IL-21 levels in both groups before and after treatment were measured by ELISA;the expression levels of STAT3 and RORγt before and after treatment in patients were measured by using skin lesion immunohistochemical method.The results showed that the TCM symptoms were improved significantly in both groups(P<0.05),and the effect in observation group was significantly better than that in the control group(P<0.05).PASI and DLQI scores were decreased significantly after treatment in both groups(P<0.05),and the scores in observation group were significantly lower than those in the control group(P<0.05).The curative effect of the observation group was significantly higher than that of the control group(P<0.05).After treatment,the percentage of Th17 cells,as well as IL-17,IL-23,IL-22 and IL-21 levels in peripheral blood were significantly decreased in both groups(P<0.05),and the levels in observation group were significantly lower than those in the control group(P<0.05).The expression levels of STAT3 and RORγt in both groups were significantly lower than those before treatment(P<0.01),and the levels in observation group were significantly lower than those in the control group(P<0.05).All of the results indicted that Qingying Tang can effectively improve the skin lesions and TCM syndrome in patients with psoriasis and blood-heat syndrome,and improve patient health quality,which may be related to regulation of peripheral blood IL-23/Th17.

Synthesis and antitumor activities of 8-aminobenzofuran3, 2-d pyrimidine derivatives / 中国药学杂志

OBJECTIVE: To synthesize the derivatives of 8-amino benzofuran[3, 2-d] pyrimidine and study their anticancer activiies. METHODS: The target compounds were synthesized through a series of reactions, and their anticancer activities in vitro were evaluated against COLO205, MCF-7 and K562 cell lines by MTT as assay. RESULTS: Nine title compounds were synthesized and confirmed by EI-MS, 1H-NMR and 13C-NMR. Compounds 2, 3d and 5c had good inhibition effect against COLO205, MCF-7 and K562 cells. The inhibition rates of compound 5c against COLO205, MCF-7 and K562 cells were 99.58%, 78.75% and 98.68% respectively at 10-4 mol · L-1. CONCLUSION: The anticancer activity of benzofuran[3, 2-d] pyrimidine derivatives is worthy of further study.

Diagnosis of Muscular Dystrophy Using Western Blot with Micro-sample of Muscle / 中国医学科学院学报

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To diagnose muscular dystrophy using Western blot (WB) by improving the method of the protein extraction.</p><p><b>METHOD</b>Firstly,we compared the effect of different sample buffer solutions and processing Methods on the extraction of muscle protein in rats,then selected the appropriate extracting method and the process of the muscular protein.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>We put the selected sample buffer into the micro-sample,then mixed. The concentration of the extracting protein was much more,and the loss during the process was much less. We extracted enough protein in 62 cases. The protein bands were showed clearly by WB,and the abnormal protein bands were shown in some patients. Compared with the Results of immunohistochemical staining detected the severe abnormal expressions of Dys-R,Dys-C,and Dys-N in the specimens,we did not detect the corresponding target band in WB. We detected the target protein band of the specimens were abnormal position,light or normal staining in WB,while Dys were mildly expressed in immunohistochemical staining.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>The improved protein extraction method can save the muscle tissue,and the protein bands can be used for diagnosing the muscular dystrophy. For clinically suspected patients with dystrophinopathy,if normal or mild deficiency is shown by immunohistochemistry,WB should be applied to detect the dystrophin protein band.</p>

Tissue-engineered neural complex seeded in modified collagen scaffold for treatment of acute spinal cord injury in adult rats / 中华创伤杂志

Objective To repair the injured spinal cord in adult rats using tissue-engineered neural complex constructed in vitro by tissue engineering techniques and discuss the treatment effect.Methods Neural stem cells (NSCs) from rats were cultured separately and modified collagen scaffold was also prepared to construct complex of NSCs /modified collagen scaffold in vitro.Embryo spine cord extract was administered to induce differentiation of NSCs,the structure of which was revealed by histochemical technique and scanning electron microscope.The rat models of hemisected spinal cord injury were built and grafted with tissue-engineered neural complex.Functional recovery of the models was evaluated every two weeks postoperatively.Effect in repair of spinal cord injury was assessed by histological method at postoperative three and eight weeks.Results After tissue-engineered neural complex planted in the modified collagen scaffold was grafted into the injured spinal cord in adult rats,the seed cells survived and further differentiated into functionally active neurons.The differentiated glia cells presented quite regular reticular structure.Motor function below the level of the injured spinal cord in adult rats obtained obvious recovery.Conclusion Tissue-engineered neural complex seeded in the modified collagen scaffold takes effect in structural reconstruction and functional recovery of the injured spinal cord in adult rats.

Preliminary study on aberrant expression of miRNAs related to the formation of the distinction between pediatric and adult types of brainstem gliomas / 中华外科杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVES</b>To study the different expression of miRNA between pediatric and adult types of brainstem gliomas, and to provide the target miRNAs for explore the mechanism and miRNA interference of the malignant progression of pediatric BSG.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>miRNA expression profiles in orthotopic models which could simulate the BSG heterogeneity were examined by microarray and analyzed to obtain the aberrantly expressed miRNAs. The two types of human BSG tissue were utilized to verify the microarray data by qRT-PCR and in situ hybridization for the putative causative miRNAs.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>There were 216 miRNAs detected in both the pediatric BSG group and the adult BSG group, 39 miRNAs to be differential expressed in the pediatric BSG group versus adult group, including 10 up-regulated and 29 down-regulated. qRT-PCR and in situ hybridization indicated good consistency with that of the microarray method.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>Aberrantly expressed miRNA may serve as putative causative involvement of malignant progression of pediatric BSG, thereby might be potentially novel targets for therapy.</p>

MRI of pancreatic duct changes in piglets with chronic pancreatitis / 中华放射学杂志

Objective To study MRI findings of pancreatic ducts of piglets with chronic pancreatitis (CP) induced by pancreatic duct ligation and analyze the relationship between pancreatic duct changes in piglets with CP and the pathological severity of CP. Methods Thirty healthy piglets were included in this study. Five piglets were randomly selected as normal control group, and the remaining 25 piglets were served as the experimental group. The duct ligation operations were performed on experimental group. After 2 to 18 weeks, pancreas and pancreatic ducts were observed on MRI. Then the pancreas was removed and graded into three types by histopathology. The relationship between the diameter of pancreatic duct or the pancreatic branch displaying rate and the severity of CP was analyzed by Spearman correlation coefficient. Results CP was found in 21 piglets( 84. 0% ) in the experimental group including mild ( n = 7 ), moderate ( n = 8 ) and severe( n = 6) pancreatitis. Pancreatic ducts were shown in mild CP and the edge of pancreatic ducts was irregular in three cases. The dilated RPD, LPD and MPD constituted the "person" form in moderate and severe CP. The diameter of pancreatic ducts was(0. 9 ±0. 3)mm, (2. 9 ± 1.4)mm and (4. 8 ± 1.2)mm in mild, moderate, and severe CP respectively. The expansion extent of pancreatic ducts was correlated with the severity of CP of piglets (r = 0. 837, P ＜ 0. 05). The pancreatic branch displaying rate increased with the increase of the severity of CP ( r = 0. 990, P ＜ 0. 05 ); the displaying rate was 0/7 for mild, 3/8 for moderate, and 5/6 for severe CP. Conclusions The dilated pancreatic ducts with "person" form in piglets with obstructive CP created by pancreatic duct ligation. The pancreatic duct changes on MRI reflect the severity of CP of piglets.

The effect of silencing Dicer by small interference RNA on the biological characteristics of human glioma cells / 中华医学遗传学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To study the effect of silencing Dicer by small interference RNA (siRNA) to suppress the global microRNA (miRNAs) expression on the biological characteristics of TJ905 glioblastoma cells.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>The silencing effect of RNA interference on Dicer expression was evaluated by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), Western blot analysis and immunofluorescence staining. The cell proliferation rate and cell cycle kinetics were detected by MTT assay and flow cytometry respectively, and the cell invasive ability was evaluated by transwell assay.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The siRNA targeting Dicer suppressed the expression of Dicer in TJ905 cells. Meanwhile, the proliferation activity and invasive ability were significantly enhanced in cells transfected with Dicer siRNA compared to those cells transfected with scrambled siRNA and the control cells.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Suppression of Dicer expression renders the glioma cells harboring more aggressive phenotype. This preliminary finding suggests that global lower expression of miRNAs may play an oncogenic role.</p>

Inhibitory effect of knocking down microRNA-221 and microRNA-222 on glioma cell growth in vitro and in vivo / 中华肿瘤杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To study the inhibitory effect of knocking down microRNA(miR)-221 and miR-222 on human glioma cell growth and its possible mechanism.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>miRNA-221/222 antisense oligonucleotides (antisense miR221/222) were transfected into human glioma U251 cells by lipofectamine. Northern blot analysis was conducted to detect the mRNA expression of miR-221/222 in the control and transfected cell groups. The proliferation activity of cells was determined by MTT assay. Cell invasion ability was examined by transwell assay, and cell cycle kinetics and apoptosis were detected with flow cytometry. The expression of relevant proteins was analyzed by Western blotting. The therapeutic efficacy of antisense miR221/222 on the growth of xenograft tumors in nude mice were also observed.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>In the antisense miR-221/222-transfected cells, the expression of miR-221/222 was significantly reduced; the cell invasion ability was suppressed, cell cycle was blocked at G(0)/G(1) phase, and apoptotic cells were increased. The growth of xenograft tumors treated with antisense miR-221/222 was also inhibited. In antisense miR-221/222 treated tumor cells, the expression of bcl-2 was down-regulated while connexin43, p27, PUMA, caspase-3, PTEN, TIMP3 and Bax up-regulated, and p53 expression not changed.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>There is a significant inhibitory effect of antisense miR-221/222 on the growth of human glioma U251 cells. miR-221/222 may be considered as a candidate target for gene therapy of human gliomas.</p>

MRI manifestations of normal pancreas in piglets / 中国医学影像技术

Objective To observe the MRI findings of normal pancreas in piglets. Methods Eight healthy piglets underwent MR examination, and the morphology, size, signal intensity of pancreas were observed. After MR imaging, all piglets were abdominally incised to observe the anatomy of pancreas and pancreatic adjacent structures. The opening of both common bile duct and pancreatic duct were detected during operation. Two piglets were sacrificed after operation and the whole pancreases were dissected for anatomic research. Results The pancreas of piglets was composed of three parts: right lobe, median lobe and left lobe. All the lobes were displayed clearly on MRI. The signal intensity of pancreas was higher than that of liver and spleen on T1WI, whereas lower than that of liver and spleen on T2WI. On MRCP, pancreatic duct was not presented, whereas the common bile duct could be seen clearly. The opening of common bile duct located at superior part of duodenum (nearby the pylorus) and the opening of pancreatic duct situated at duodenal papilla corresponding to pancreatic right lobe. Conclusion MRI can show the pancreas of piglets very well. The morphology of pancreas and features of common bile duct conjunction with pancreatic duct in piglet are different from those in human.

Differential expression of Notch1 and Notch2 in astrocytoma and medulloblastoma / 中华病理学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To detect the differential expression of Notch1 and Notch2 in human astrocytoma and medulloblastoma; and to study the role of Notch1 and Notch2 in the development of both tumors.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Immunohistochemical staining (SP method) and Western blot analysis were used to detect Notch1 and Notch2 expression in tissue arrays and freshly resected samples of normal brain tissue, astrocytoma and medulloblastoma.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Notch1 and Notch2 were negative in normal human brain tissue. Notch1 was highly expressed (total positive rate 80.0%, 48/60) while Notch2 was not detected in grade IV astrocytomas and sporadically observed in lower grade astrocytomas (total positive rate 10.0%, 6/60). The percentage of positive tumor cells and expression level of Notch1 increased with higher histologic grade (r = 0.859, P < 0.05). On the other hand, overexpression of Notch2 was detected in medulloblastoma (9/10) in contrast with lower expression of Notch1 (2/10).</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>Notch1 and Notch2 show differential expression in astrocytoma and medulloblastoma. This may be related to their different functional activities during the process of brain development.</p>

Study on the anti-invasion effect of SEPT7 gene for U251MG glioma cell in vitro / 中华医学遗传学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To study the anti-invasion effect of SEPT7 gene on U251MG glioma cells and its possible molecular mechanism.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Recombinant adenovirus vector carrying SEPT7 gene (rAd5-SEPT7) was transduced to human glioma cell line U251MG, and empty adenovirus vector was used as control. Tumor invasion was examined by Transwell method and 3 D-Matrigel assay, and tumor cell migration by wound-healing method and 2 D-Matrigel assay. Three major molecular events associated with cell motility and migration, including changes of expression in MMP2, MMP9, MT1-MMP, TIMP1 and TIMP2, the alteration of integrin alpha(v)beta(3) expression, and the structural change of cytoskeleton protein, tubulin-alpha, in U251 cells transduced with rAd5-SEPT7 were studied by Western blotting, immunofluorescence and laser scanning confocal microscope, respectively.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The invasive and migratory capabilities of cells transduced with rAd5-SEPT7 were inhibited. The expression of extracellular matrix metalloproteinases MMP-2, MMP-9, MT1-MMP and integrin alpha(v)beta(3) was significantly decreased, while the expression of matrix metalloproteinase inhibitor TIMP1, TIMP2 was upregulated. Intracellular cytoskeleton protein-tubulin-alpha in U251 cells exhibited prominent morphological changes which including the appearance of distortion and aggregation resulting from redistribution of tubulin-alpha, and this feature of alteration was similar to the tubulin-alpha structure in normal non-tumor cells.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>SEPT7 gene can inhibit the invasion and migration ability of U251 glioma cells. Its molecular mechanism may include that SEPT7 gene reverses the imbalanced state of MMPs/TIMPs, downregulates the expression of integrin alpha(v)beta(3) and alters the structure of tubulin-alpha of U251MG glioma cells. It is suggested that SEPT7 gene could be a good candidate for gene therapy of gliomas.</p>